Woman charged with assault in struggle over strapping child in car seat

Updated 10:51 pm, Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Svetlana V. Simmons of Knapps Highway was charged with third-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and breach of peace in connection with a dispute with her former husband's business associate over placing the couple's child in a car safety seat.

Photo: Fairfield Police Department

Svetlana V. Simmons of Knapps Highway was charged with third-degree...

A 44-year-old Fairfield woman was charged Monday with assaulting a business associate of her former husband as the associate tried to put the couple's child in a car.

Svetlana V. Simmons, of Knapps Highway, was charged in an arrest warrant with third-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor and breach of peace after she turned herself in at police headquarters Monday afternoon. Bond was set at $500 and she is scheduled to appear July 23 in Bridgeport Superior Court.

Simmons had driven to the Noyes Road home of her ex-husband on May 29 to exchange custody of their child, according to police, and became angry when his female business associate attempted to place the child in a car seat. The associate told police that Simmons tried to pull her from the car as she was placing the child in the car seat, according to the report. The business associate said her arm was sore and bruised where Simmons had grabbed her and officers noticed bruises on her arm, according to the report.

The associate went to police headquarters after the incident to file a report and request an arrest be made, police said. Police said the associate also provided police with surveillance video of the incident, which took place about 6:07 p.m. May 29.

The surveillance video, recorded by a home security system, "showed the complainant leaning into a car, buckling the child into a car seat, and Svetlana running up to the complainant, yelling at her and grabbing her," said Deputy Police Chief Christopher Lyddy.

Simmons' ex-husband had asked the business associate to place the child in a car seat so that woman could drive him and the child to a restaurant for dinner, police said.